Too few women heard on contraceptives

Imagine: Republican Darrell Issa convenes a House hearing Thursday on contraceptives and invites no women to speak about how such rules would affect them.
The hearing, says the congressman from Vista (San Diego County), is not about contraceptives, it’s about religious liberty. That explains why he invited five male witnesses who espouse conservative views of just two faiths to testify at the hearing convened to guide reproductive health care policy for all American women.

Female witnesses included Allison Garrett of Oklahoma Christian University and Dr. Laura Champion of Calvin College Health Services, but the damage was already done when the committee refused to allow the Democrats to have Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown University law student, testify at the first hearing on the consequences women face when denied insurance coverage that includes contraceptives. Issa said she was not qualified because the hearing was on religious freedom.

It’s time to drop the fig leaf of religious liberty and reveal this debate for what it is: another attempt to defeat President Obama and his health care mandate.